Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship
So, a couple of months ago I started this blog as an assignment for a Politics of Sustainability class at Indiana University. Today, that class is over - but I've had so much fun I'm going to keep on writing. Why? Must be because I'm a narcissist -it sure ain't because I have a huge following. My #1 fan is a spambot from Russia (I suddenly want to drink vodka, read Pasternak and have naughty dreams of Mikhail Baryshnikov)
The following is an excerpt from my class final:
Do you think that Americans will continue to tolerate current economic inequalities?
In my opinion, yes, Americans will continue to tolerate the drop in income, standard and quality of living at the same time tolerate the gap between poor and rich as it grows to outrageous proportions. Why, because Americans are really quite lazy. Americans, even when the system is not working are loathe to change it because to go against the capitalistic American myth, (which has never really worked) is . . . is . . . well it is ‘un-American’ and any alternative reeks of the dreaded communism or the feared socialism (Americans don’t like isms - they like ists: capitalist, evangelist, elitist, Titleist (as in golf balls) . . .)
Americans are like fat, hairy legged, curmudgeonly old men who like to sit around in their underwear, talking back to the TV, complaining, but never doing anything about anything. (lovely mental picture)
Real change takes sacrifice and pain, and Americans just aren’t into that kind of stuff (well some are, but not in that way). I hear it on an almost daily basis – as I post my daily rants on my Facebook wall about whatever is ticking me off that morning. Today, it was a rant about Walmart – how they are evil incarnate, treat their workers like dog crap, pay minimum wage, expect the sun and the moon, give them enough hours to disqualify them from food stamps and Medicaid, but don’t pay them enough to make up the difference and employ Nazi tactics to keep folks from unionizing. Not to mention what it has done to economies as it devours local business and strongarms vendors into selling below cost if they want to do business with Walfart. (Did you ever notice how cheap pickles are at WallyWorld? Vlasic got roped into a contract where they didn’t make any money from most of their products sold in Walmart. For the record, I do my part - I buy my higher priced Vlasic kosher dills at Kroger).
Every single one of the people commenting on my post thought I as total crank. They didn’t care about Walmart’s employees, and felt if they were treated poorly, it was their on faults for working there, besides they justified their shopping at the devil’s warehouse because they “could not afford to shop elsewhere”. If some harried soccer mom doesn’t care enough to drive her SUV to a more ethical store – then we are all doomed
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The truth of the matter is, even the poorest folks still have a bit to fall before they are living like their counterparts in Bangladesh. I am not saying poor folk’s conditions aren’t bad (I am a poor folk myself) but we have homeless shelters, and food pantries and just enough assistance to stop people from getting angry enough to take a baseball bat and go after the politicians and special interest groups who caused this in the first place. I know, I know, there is the Occupy Movement and maybe this is the beginning of something – maybe not, but the fact is most occupiers are running around with a picket signs in their hand, not guns and cleavers. (What would Madame DeFarge Do?) I do not look forward to suffering and misery – but I think that is the only way apathetic America will ever get off their collective fat asses and do something about the situation. 
For the full episode of South Park, Something Wall Mart This Way Comes click the link below
I'll post the second half of my final in the next few days
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